16A - THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
MONDAY,AUGUST 18,2003
NEWS
West Nile virus strikes Kansas earlier
By Danielle Hillix
dhillix@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
After a dormant winter, West Nile virus has surfaced in Kansas for the second straight summer, striking earlier and more often than before.
Despite the increased number of West Nile cases in Kansas and throughout the country, officials say that West Nile does not have to be a major cause of concern. If the proper precautions are taken, the mosquito-borne virus can be avoided, said Sharon Watson, public information officer with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.
"Rather than worry about it, people should take the precautions necessary to prevent West Nile virus." Watson said. "If people do what is necessary, then there isn't a need to be worried."
"The second or third year of the outbreak tended to be worse than the first," she said. "We were expecting it, so we have been gearing up for a more difficult year."
KDHE officials expected an increase after seeing it happen in other states that had been infected with West Nile for several years.
This summer, KDHE confirmed four human cases of West Nile virus: two in Gray county and one each in Ford and Sherman counties. Two victims remain hospitalized.
The department also confirmed the presence of West Nile virus in horses, birds and mosquitoes in 43 additional Kansas counties.
West Nile resurfaced in Douglas County in early August, when a dead crow tested positive for the disease.
disease. No human cases have been reported in the area, but officials with the Douglas County Health Department are preparing for the
worst, said Kim Ens, the department's disease control program coordinator.
Douglas County has avoided many cases of West Nile because of the extreme drought, Ens said.
At this time last year the CDC had confirmed 100 human cases.
"With the lack of rain, we haven't had a lot of standing water, which has reduced the mosquito population in the area," Ens said.
West Nile virus has killed four people and infected about 150 oth
ers in the United States this summer, according to reports released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
With the increase in West Nile cases, Kansas health officials are asking people to take precautionary measures to prevent any further spread of the disease.
The best strategy for controlling
the West Nile virus is controlling the mosquito population, said Ludek Zurek, assistant professor in medical anthropology at Kansas State University.
State University.
Zurek, who works with KDHE to track the virus in Kansas, recommends people eliminate any stagnant, standing pools of water. Any water pools that are needed, such as bird baths or pet dishes, should be changed daily.
Prevention has helped Flint Russett, Jetmore third-year pharmacy student, and his family protect their livestock and themselves. After losing a colt to the West Nile virus last year, the Russett began vaccinating their horses against the virus and spraying for mosquitoes.
Animals on other farms in Jetmore have contracted the West Nile virus, but the Russett farm has not been hit this year.
In addition to proper precautions, tracking the spread of the West Nile virus will help control it. Zurek said. Tracking dead birds is the most effective.
"We've gotten lucky, but a lot of that is because of the precautions we are taking this year," he said.
Kansas residents can report dead birds to the KDHE by calling toll-free 1-865-462-7810. For questions about West Nile virus in humans, contact KDHE at 1-877-427-7317.
-Edited by Michael Owells
HOW TO STAY SAFE
The West Nile virus has infected four Kansas residents this summer. Though the virus is particularly dangerous to the elderly and those with weakened immune systems, it is important for everyone to take precautions to prevent the disease, said Sharon Watson, public information officer for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. There are several times a year, during sickness and stressful periods, when even healthy immune systems are weakened, she said. "We want everyone to make caution a general practice, because you just never know," Watson said.
neve know. Podcasts The KOHE recommends the following precautions to minimize contact with mosquitoes and exposure to West Nile virus:
Use insect repellent
containing BLEM
Limit outdoor activities during dawn and dusk when mosquitos are most active.
CDC: 55 percent of Americans still not exercising enough
Wear long-sleeved shirts and long pants when outdoors.
Repair screens or other areas of your home where mosquitos might enter.
The Associated Press
ATLANTA — Even when sweeping, waiting tables and tossing a Frisbee count as exercise, most Americans still aren't getting enough of it.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, believing earlier studies failed to accurately
measure Americans' fitness because they focused on intense exercise, has lumped everyday activities such as housework and gardening with jogging and lifting weights.
But even with playing with children and raking the lawn on the list of moderate-intensity activities, the 2001 phone survey
released Thursday showed 55 percent of adults still didn't get the recommended minimum: 30 minutes a day, at least four days a week.
“It's surprising," said Harold Kohl of the CDC, who authored the study. "There's still more than one out of two Americans who are not active at a level we think
promotes health. From an overall health standpoint, ... we've really got to move the needle substantially from where it is right now."
The 2001 survey results were better than under the old definition of exercise used in the 2000 survey, when 74 percent of adults missed the recommendations, but still too low, health officials
The survey found little change in the proportion of adults who said they didn't do any kind of significant exercise — 26 percent in 2001 and 27.4 percent in 2000. It also found that Kentucky had the lowest percentage of people who got the recommended amount of exercise, while Wyoming had the
The recommendations are just the minimum to prevent people from developing chronic diseases such as high blood pressure or diabetes. The Institute of Medicine says people should double the CDC's recommendations 60 minutes of moderate exercise a day to drop pounds.
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